Motivation and Creating Positive, Long Lasting Change

To make a significant change in your life, you need to not only get motivated, but stay motivated. Our habits are significantly ingrained in our minds and bodies which makes breaking those habits an extremely difficult thing to do.

The first step to making positive changes in your life is determining that you are ready to make the change and committed to doing so. Deciding to change cannot come from others who may be telling you to change. The desire to change has to come from within or else your motivation to change may not be strong enough to actually put in the work that it takes to make the change.

The other important component is that you have to be committed to making the change. If you are not 100% sure that you want to make the change, you may not be committed and progress with be minimal and short lasting.

Once you have decided that you are ready and committed to making the change, the next step is to write down your goals, both big and small. In order to achieve a bigger goal, there are many smaller goals in between that you much achieve first to help you achieve the bigger one. Make sure to give yourself credit for your successes both big and small. Making a small change should not go unnoticed or unacknowledged because it is helping you to reach your bigger goal. You should also reward yourself for your successes which positively reinforces the change and makes it more likely that you will continue to make more positive changes.

Remember to be patient, change does not happen overnight. As mentioned earlier, creating change is a very difficult thing to do and to make sure that the change will be long lasting, you have to do it right and give it the time and attention it deserves. Without that, the change will most likely not last long and it may cause you to feel defeated or discouraged.

Ask yourself, “What would I like to change about myself?” and begin making positive, long lasting changes today!